The post 253 Thrillers for Young Adults with Kara A Kennedy appeared first on Sacha Black.

In this episode we cover:

• What are sex positive stories and where is the line between sex positive and smut?
• How to sensitively cover topics like sexual assault
• How to create a crew/found family vibe
• Tips and tricks for creating a voicey narrator voice!

This week’s question is: how comfortable are you writing sex and relationships into your books?

Recommendation of the week is: Midnight Victories by L.K. Latham

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Cover Illustration © 2021 Noah Camp

Cover Design by Hana Anouk Nakamura

Cover © 2021 Amulet Books

and Author Photo © 2021 Margot Wood

Rebel of the Week is: Julie

If you’d like to be a Rebel of the week please do send in your story, it can be any kind of rebellion. You can email your rebel story to rebelauthorpodcast@gmail.com or instagram me @sachablackauthor

1 new patron this week, a big welcome and thank you to Jess Nicole. A big thank you to my existing patrons as well. If you’d like to support the show, and get early access to all the episodes as well as bonus content you can from as little as $2 a month by visiting: www.patreon.com/sachablack

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Recommended by Cassie, The Sassy Writing Coach

The post 127 How to Write Humour and Sex Positive Stories for Teens with Margot Wood appeared first on Sacha Black.

Not so much people, not so much.

I’ve written more than one book, but Victor was my second fiction book. That seemed to make a difference.

Victor was SO much harder to write than Keepers. I’ve heard that ‘second-book-syndrome’ is a real thing. I mean, I’m not a debut author anymore, but likewise, I’m not a seasoned pro yet either. In true YA fashion, imma go right ahead and think of myself as a sophomore!

It meant that starting this book, I knew how the process of writing and editing would work, I knew the graft would be hard grueling and yet, I had the delightful bonus pressure of ensuring Victor was as good as (although preferably better) than Keepers.

But of course, I’m only a sophomore, so the ‘process’ I’d so arrogantly predicted I’d use, didn’t go anything like to plan. My beautiful, glorious ‘plan’ got hoovered into a freaking hurricane of doubt, pressure, and paralysis.

I wrote Keepers in a chronological order. I’d assumed Victor would go the same way. Victor wasn’t playing ball. Knowing the character, I should have expected trouble. He’s a right bastard that one.

Anyway.

Book two means more. MORE everything.

I needed to make sure the characters were consistent, I picked up all the storylines, the world building details weren’t cocked up by a slip of my perpetually senile memory. And all while, I was trying to develop and grow my writing craft.

I’ll be honest, Mt Everest felt like a walk in the park compared to this book, and I should know, I’ve trekked to base camp. For the first time in my life, I wasn’t sure I could reach my goal. I haven’t talked about this anywhere really, but it’s launch day, so I clearly defeated the beast, which is why I feel comfortable sharing this with you.

I stalled partway through writing Victor.

And we’re not talking a minor stumble and oops-a-daisy. We’re talking titana-berg levels of sinking fuck up.

In five years, I haven’t gone more than a couple of (a few at most) days without penning words. But smack in the middle of writing Victor I knew something was wrong with the story, and I car crashed HARD. For THREE excruciatingly long weeks. I thought I’d never write again. No words were coming to me. My mind was a literal black hole and Victor had bumbled his difficult ass right into it. I convinced myself I was a one-hit wonder.

But then my amazing beta reader made a comment about one particular location in the book, and BOOM. I immediately knew what was wrong and how to fix it. I tore up the opening chapters and rewrote them, from scratch. After that, it was a sprint to the finish.

Why am I sharing this?

Because I think it’s important to be real. To share not just the highs but the blisteringly painful obstacles we face on our roads. Life IS a journey and no journey is a straight road. Too often I forget that the beauty is in the journey itself. Once you reach your goal it’s all over.

I’m also sharing this because if anything, I’m even MORE proud of publishing Victor than Keepers. Yes, it was harder, but that’s made the completion all the sweeter.

Last, I’m sharing this because if it inspires just one person to keep going when their goal gets tough, then it was worth writing. Remember, only the persistent win. Just keep typing.

The post Victor Launch Day – Plus a dose of Second Book Syndrome appeared first on Sacha Black.

Anyhoozle, of my 52 books, I wanted a quarter to be indie published, and a quarter to be non-fiction, because 1. supporting other authors, and 2. I’m a knowledge whore.

I’ve been surprised and delighted by looking back at my reading list, some of the stats have shocked me.

So, the stats, out of my 52 books (because I know what the final couple are):

• 26 (50%) were non-fiction
• 26 (50%) were fiction
• 27 (53%) were from self-published authors (of which a couple were author friends with publishing deals)
• 25 (48%) were traditionally published books
• 20 of the 26 fiction books were Young Adult (no surprises there!) Although the biggest shocker for me this year was that only 9 were fantasy, 11 were contemporary YA. I had a feeling I’d been leaning towards contemporary, but I was surprised to realise I’d read MORE contemporary than fantasy.

I’ve had a couple of characters that would fit a contemporary story flitting around my head, so I might start listening – obviously I’ve been bending towards it for a reason.

You can see the rest of the books I’ve read here.

So to my top 10 books of this year, and my top 10 books (plus predictions for next year).

BEST OF 2017

Fiction Books of 2017 (in no particular order)

The Bone Season by Samantha Shannon

Oath Breaker by Shelley Wilson

Orbiting Jupiter by G. D. Schmidt

A Semi Definitive List of Worst Nightmares by Krystal Sutherland

The Watch and Wand by Allie Potts

Keepers by me (because obviously I’m going to include my own books! :p)

Non-Fiction Books of 2017

When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalanithi

Deep Work by Cal Newport

Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert

Nobody Wants To Read Your Shit Anyway by Stephen Pressfield

13 Steps To Evil – How To Craft A Superbad Villain by me (because obvs)

And What of 2018? Predictions and Books to Watch Out For

Okay so I’ve got a couple of predictions for 2018

1. There’s been a TON of superhero books published by the big YA authors – Leigh Bardugo, Marie Lu, Marissa Meyer to name but a few. With Infinity Wars coming next year, I’ve no doubt that were going to see an explosion of superhero books.
2. In addition, I think there might be more pirate novels too
3. Alongside that, more graphic novels
4. Last, I think audio books will continue to rise in popularity
5. Oh, and one more, I think that there will be an increase in co-authored books

10 (that turned into 14) Young Adult Books To Watch Out for in 2018

The sequel to Keepers, by ME!

The Astonishing Colour of After by Emily. X. R. Pan

The Exact Opposite of Okay – Laura Steven

Cruel Prince – Holly Black

Time Bomb –Joelle Charbonneau

Everless – Sara Holland

Zenith – Sasha Alsber & Lindsay Cummings

Children of Blood and Bone – Tomi Adeyemi

Onyx and Ivory Mindee Arnett

Glitter – Aprillynne Pike

War Storm – Victoria Aveyard

A Court of Frost and Starlight – Sarah J. Maas

Obsidio – Aimee Kaufmann and Jay Kristoff

Legendary – Stephanie Garber

That’s it folks, my year in books, my predictions for 2018 and a few books to Keep an eye out for.

If you haven’t bagged your copy of Keepers yet, don’t forget it’s out in all good bookstores now, you can grab your copy here.

You can also find me on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, Goodreads

The post 10 Best Books of 2017 and 10 YA Books to Look Out For in 2018 appeared first on Sacha Black.

November 17th heralds my first fiction release and I couldn’t be more excited.

As part of the launch, I decided to run a giveaway competition to win… 

1 of 2 signed paperbacks or

1 of 5 eBook copies

If you’d like to enter, all you have to do is sign up here. That’s it. Simple.

Competition closes 10th November at 12 pm. Winners will be notified at 7:30 pm BST on the 10th. Books will be shipped no later than 3 weeks after the 17th November (author copies take a while to arrive).

Here’s the book blurb:

Eden’s life is balanced…

…until her soul is bound to her enemy.

When her parents are murdered, the realm of Trutinor is threatened. Then a mysterious human arrives and changes everything.

As Eden’s world spirals out of control, she doesn’t need a charismatic Siren from her past returning to complicate life.

Now, saving Trutinor is the last thing on Eden’s mind.

Three boys.

Two murdered parents.

One deadly choice.

You can also add Keepers to your Goodreads list, here. 

The post #Win Signed Paperbacks – YA Fantasy appeared first on Sacha Black.

I’m always sniffing around Shelley’s blog to see what Young Adult book she’s reviewed this week because I love her recommendations. But today, there’s something FAR more exciting.

Today she’s spilling the beans on her own new YA werewolf release Oathbeaker (out today) as well as giving us hot tips on writing Young Adult fiction. Which you can get here:

Amazon UK 

Amazon US

Without further ado, Shelley… Welcome.

You’ve written a LOT of books now, how has your process changed in that time?

Ha ha, I always said you’d never shut me up once I got going!

When I began piecing together my first book, which was non-fiction, I didn’t realise there was a ‘process,’ I just muddled along and hoped for the best. I probably stumbled about in the dark for my first couple of books before discovering a writing rhythm. I’m more disciplined now, and I’ve become a neurotic planner against the pantser writer I used to be.

What are the three best tricks tips or tools you’ve picked up in your writing career?

Many years ago I used to write my stories longhand into a notebook. Eventually, I realised this was one of the main reasons I never got past chapter four. I now write all my character bios, scene notes, and dialogue ideas into my notepad but type the manuscript directly onto the computer.

Post-it notes are a godsend! I’ve tried to use Scrivener, but it blows my mind, so I’ve returned to my trusty paper and pen. Having my book outlined as bullet points on bright little squares stuck to the office wall keeps me on track when I’m writing.

Finally, the best tip I’ve ever learned and the one thing that keeps me producing books at a reasonable rate is to churn out that first draft and not edit it. NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) taught me that. I will re-read the last sentence before picking up the story again, but I refuse to read over the manuscript until it’s out of my head and on paper. I will also leave it a week or two before looking at it. Yes, I’ll cringe and cry over it when I finally dig it back out, but I can start re-writing with fresh eyes. I use this process with everything I write.

That’s a cracking blurb, something writers usually find hard. How’d you get so good (don’t say time) and what tips have you got for other writers doing theirs?

Aw, thank you for that, Sacha. I enjoy writing the book blurbs. I like to think of them as a piece of flash fiction. You get to tell an enticing tale in a short space of time, but instead of rounding off with a suitable ending you leave the reader wanting more. I normally have the blurb sorted before I start writing the book so I can use it as a guideline. It might need a little tweak or two, but most of the time I can work with it.

When I start working on a new project I do two things, I’ll create a mock up front cover, so I’ve got something visual to keep me motivated, and I’ll write the blurb. The best advice I can offer is to read a ton of book blurbs in your local bookshop and see which ones you feel drawn to and why. I like short, choppy blurbs that tease rather than a long overly-descriptive passage.

Best tip for a YA writer?

Don’t overanalyse the genre. I write YA fantasy which is a massive market and if I stopped to study the incredible authors in this genre for too long I’d chuck my work in the bin and give up! I read tons of YA, but I no longer do it as a ‘student’ of writing. I enjoy the story for what it is and marvel at the imagination of an author, but then I’ll create my own worlds, characters, and enjoy immersing myself in the story I generate. When I used to read YA with an analytical eye, I couldn’t lose myself in the fantasy, and so it became a chore rather than reading for pleasure. I do make a note of an outstanding piece of prose or dialogue I come across, but I’ve stopped getting hung up on the learning and merely trust my own voice.

It’s getting harder to keep up with trends and find our audiences. How do you reach your YA audience?

I’ve never bothered keeping up with trends. I’ll read a new release if I like the sound of the blurb, but quite often I’ll get to a book a year or two later than everyone else – it’s my ‘you can’t tell me what to do’ personality coming out ha ha. In that respect, our audience can also be found years after we’ve published. With YA especially, there is always a new generation coming along, and so a spot of targeted marketing might do the trick.

As I also write non-fiction for the mind, body, spirit genre, I knew I couldn’t bunch all my books together on social media and be effective with my marketing. I, therefore, started two business Facebook pages. The first is for my personal development blog where I also promote my non-fiction work, and the second is a dedicated site to my YA books.

I love this page and try to interact with my followers as often as time allows. Interestingly, the stats for my page followers show the age range to be between the 18-25 and 25-33 brackets and yet my books are aimed at 13+. Finding my target audience is an ongoing slog. I joined Instagram but as soon as I joined the kids went over to Snapchat, if I start ‘snapping’ then they’ll find something else – It’s exhausting! I’ve noticed that the majority of my sales have been from women (my age) who read my non-fiction but are intrigued by the covers of my fiction, buy it, read it, love it, and then pass it on to their kids. I guess I find my YA audience eventually then!

What’s your fave and least fave things about writing?

I love getting the germ of an idea and working with it until it becomes a full story with plot twist ideas, characters, and settings. The planning stage is one of my favourites because I’m living with the anticipation of what could be and that’s exciting.

I don’t have a least favourite part about writing unless you count too many ideas and not enough hours in the day! I love the entire process of creating, writing, and editing and relish the opportunity to create something from nothing.

Most random place you’ve written or gotten the urge to write

OMG I’m so boring!! The most random place I’ve ever written is sitting on the left side of the sofa instead of the right – see, I told you I was boring ha ha. I like it to be quiet when I’m writing so that romantic illusion of a coffee shop wouldn’t work for me, plus I’m too much of a people watcher to get any writing done.

As a fellow mega YA buff answer the following with YA books for answers:

A) Best YA series for a non-YA reader

Ooh, tough one! I’m going to stick with fantasy as I don’t do contemporary fiction, and I would probably suggest Fire and Flood (book 1) by Victoria Scott. Even though it’s got a great fantasy element the story is predominantly about family, loyalty, and friendship. The main character loves her mobile phone, adores fashion and sparkly nail polish, but then the book takes on a hunger games vibe. For a non-YA reader, it would ease them in gently to the whole alternative realm/weaponry/mythical creature storyline.

B) Can’t die without reading

Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare. I’m obsessed with Cassandra’s books and devour them as soon as she releases a new one. Clockwork Angel was the start of her prequel series, The Dark Artifices, which incorporated her Shadowhunter characters with the historical elements of London in the late 1800s.

C) Best for a winter night

Ink and Bone by Rachel Caine. I think there’s something mystical and wintry about old libraries and so this would be a perfect choice.

D) Beach read

Nothing at all to do with sun, sand, and mocktails but I loved reading Josephine Angelini’s Starcrossed trilogy when on holiday about five years ago. It’s about an ancient curse cast on two teens, Helen and Lucas, to loathe and love each other in equal measure. It’s all about the Gods and mythology – perfect for the beach.

E) Best series

Easy! My favourite series is Cassandra Clare’s The Mortal Instruments. Once I read City of Bones in 2007 I was hooked. Sometimes, you’ll get one or two books in a series that aren’t as good as the others but not with this – I loved all six books and went on to devour her Dark Artifices series.

 F) Best romance line

Oh blimey! I don’t ‘do’ romance, so I tend to like the more quirky romantic scenes, as in the ones that aren’t at all romantic but could lead to something in the future. It’s the anticipation of romance that I prefer. A bit like this from Jana Oliver’s Forbidden (The Demon Trappers series).

‘Why are you doing this? Spending time with me, I mean. You could have just followed me and I would never have known you were there.’

‘I feel alive when I’m with you.’

She barely subdued the snort. ‘You’re an angel. You hang with God and all those other Divine guys. I’m just…me.’

Awesome thank you Shelley, that’s enough about YA in general, let’s hear about your new book…

How did it feel leaving behind your Guardians series and starting something new?

I was quite excited about starting a new project and had already begun making notes before the last book in the Guardians trilogy was finished. I knew how I wanted Amber’s story to end and it was quite emotional, so it was a nice break to jot down new character quirks and start scene setting for Oath Breaker. The transition from faeries to werewolves was fairly smooth!

Fave quote or line from your book?

I’m not sure this is my absolute favourite line, but I’m going to count it anyway. It’s certainly the most important from a writing perspective as it was the first thing that popped into my head fully formed. After I had jotted this scene in my notebook, the entire story and characters began to build in my head.

“Like something out of a macabre horror show the blood covered everything, coating the threadbare rug in front of the fireplace with its crimson wash. The splintered remains of the coffee table littered the overturned chair, and the smell of death clung to the walls.”

It moved around in the story for a while but finally ended up as part of the opening scene.

What called you to werewolves? Tell me a little about their society in your book.

As you know, I’m a huge fan of YA fantasy and supernatural books. I’ve read so many containing werewolves and vampires but never felt drawn to write about them. My Guardian series contains witches, faeries, demons, and dragons so I always thought I’d stick to these themes going forward. It was my daughter who prompted the inclusion of werewolves. I was helping her with her creative writing homework where she had to look at turning a well-known fairy tale into something else. (Ella is a fan of The Kardashians, and Zoella which means fairy tales are ‘not her thing’) I suggested that she turn Little Red Riding Hood into a werewolf hunter. She rolled her eyes in that typical fourteen-year-old way and dismissed my input, so I pounced on the idea instead. I’ve dedicated the book to Ella as she did help me brainstorm it!

The werewolves in Oath Breaker are a family of sorts, and this is how I wanted their society to be portrayed. Mia comes from a fractured home with a violent upbringing and so trust, loyalty, and friendship is alien to her. I wanted the wolves to have that unity and bond that family can provide.

Excerpt of ur book? 

(The opening scene from Oath Breaker)

The blue flashing lights pulsed through the fractured front window, illuminating the blood splatter on the walls. The click-click of the forensic team’s camera ate into the sterile silence as the officers combed through the living room.

Like something out of a macabre horror show the blood covered everything, coating the threadbare rug in front of the fireplace with its crimson wash. The splintered remains of the coffee table littered the overturned chair, and the smell of death clung to the walls.

I lifted my eyes to look at the police officer who knelt in front of me, his face a mask of professionalism even though he must be wishing he was anywhere but here.

‘Did you see who killed your dad?’ I slowly shook my head as the officer tried to determine what had happened.

‘Someone tried to kill you, miss. I want to help. Did you see who broke in and attacked you?’

I couldn’t answer. The words were stuck in my throat. How could I tell him that my dad was the one who tried to kill me and that a wolf had jumped through the window and ripped out his throat? Who would believe me?

The paramedic dropped a medical kit at my feet and began wiping the blood from my face, the sudden cold of the antiseptic wipe causing an involuntary shudder to run through my bones. The police officer and paramedic exchanged a look. The same kind of look that my teacher and headmaster used to give each other when I tried to cover up the bruises down my arms.

I slumped a little further into the kitchen chair, letting my long dark hair fall around my face.

‘Anything you can give us by way of a description will help.’ The police officer clicked the end of his pen and poised it over the clean sheet of notepaper.

‘Big,’ I managed to say. My lips cracked as I spoke, and I could feel a trickle of blood slide down the side of my mouth. The paramedic wiped it up before moving to the gash on my forehead.

‘It…he was big. Dark hair. Brown eyes.’

The officer noted it down and let out a deep sigh. Not the best description for them to go on, but it was all I could give him. If I’d told him the attacker was hairy, with sharp claws and fangs, the paramedic would have had me committed. I didn’t need to escape from one prison to then find myself in another.

Available to buy from:

Amazon UK 

Amazon US

Publisher – http://www.BHCPress.com

Website – http://www.shelleywilsonauthor.co.uk

Oathbreaker Book Blurb

Will she follow the pack…

Or will she destroy them?

A dead mother.

A violent father.

A missing brother.

When Mia’s father is murdered, it’s her estranged uncle that comes to the rescue, but what he offers her in return for his help could be worse than the life she is leaving behind.

Taken to Hood Academy, a unique school deep in the forest, she discovers friendships, love, and the courage to stand on her own.

As she trains hard, Mia takes the oath that seals her future as a werewolf hunter, but not everyone wants Mia to succeed.

Screams in the night. Secret rooms. Hidden letters. Mia becomes an important piece in a game she doesn’t want to play.

Will the truth set her free, or will it destroy her?

***

More About Shelley Wilson
Shelley Wilson was born in Leeds but moved to the West Midlands when she was a youngster. She is a single mum to three teenagers, a fat goldfish and a crazy black cat called Luna. Her favourite things (apart from her children) are vampires, mythology, history, and pizza. Shelley is an avid reader and book blogger with a passion for Netflix marathon-binge watching sessions.

She divides her time between blogging and writing motivational non-fiction books for adults, and the fantasy worlds of her YA fiction.

Her non-fiction books combine lifestyle, motivation and self-help with a healthy dose of humour, and her YA novels combine myth, legend and fairy tales with a side order of demonic chaos.  You can check out all Shelley’s books here: http://www.amazon.co.uk/-/e/B00G5KPMJI

Shelley can be found lurking on Twitter and Facebook all the time (she wishes to add procrastination to her favourite things list!)

Contact Info

Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, Goodreads 

The post Young Adult Writing Tips With Oathbreaker Author @ShelleyWilson72 appeared first on Sacha Black.

That’s why I’ve obsessively read books since I sung my first ABC and it’s why I write just as obsessively now.

One of my biggest obsessions, is the concept of dystopian worlds. I heart everything about them. I want the t-shirt, the fan girl moves, the merch and ALL the books. ALL OF THEM.

But right now, as a writer, I’m more interested in how to get them right. What do you need building bricks do you need to include and what key factors do you need to make a dystopian world realistic.

I’ve just finished reading Jane Dougherty’s Abomination. It was both a fantastic read and an exceptional example of an apocalyptic and dystopian setting.

Here are 5 steps to perfect the dystopian world.

‘Dystopia’ is: “characterized by human misery, as squalor,oppression, disease, and overcrowding.” Dictionary.com. 

Dystopian novels usually examine a social or political concept through an oppressive or broken society or power. The juicy bits in these books tend to come from the exploration of the reasoning behind why it’s broken. But my most fave bit about dystopia is that its usually a reflection of our own fucked up society.

It’s an exploration of what could be, of what’s to come if we don’t shape up and what really, already is. It explores the darkness inside us all that if we’re not careful, will seep out, infect our shambles of a society and lead us on the path to dystopian hell.

Some of the first and most uber famous work in the dystopian field include 1984 by George Orwell and A Brave New World by Aldous Huxley, both books I’ve put on my 30 by 30 list (30 things I want to achieve/do or in this instance read by the time I’m 30, in March 2017)

In the last five years there’s been an explosion of dystopian fiction in the YA genre, and anyone who’s hung around here for even one post, will know I am a super geek for anything YA. Famous examples include: Divergent, Hunger Games, Uglies and Matched.

If you’ve got any dystopian book recommendations for me (but particularly in the YA genre) tap me up and leave me a scribble in the comments below.

Step One – Something Broken

Writing dystopian fiction is fun because you can behave like a teenage boy; break shit and blow stuff up.

And that’s just the setting. Dystopian fiction dissects humanity. I get literary ecstasy when I rub my writerly hands together and drill down into the what and why we do stuff. Why is our society so corrupt? Why do we lie? And are lies ever justified if it’s for the greater good?

These moral and philosophical questions are exactly what should be explored in a dystopian world. It’s an opportunity to explore what really fucks you off about life. I have two dystopian books on the back burner waiting to be finished: Adultland, and The Firmament, the latter of which I posted an excerpt of in last week’s Writespiration.

The point I am trying to make is, BREAK SOMETHING. Something political, or societal. But it has to be something fundamental to how our society works.

In Delirium, they determine love to be a disease and find a cure for it. In Divergent, they portion society up by personality traits. In Hunger Games they send a child off each year as a sacrifice to keep the peace.

In Abomination, Dougherty’s something broken is the world itself. The apocalypse has come, and the world is breaking apart as hell itself descends on earth.

“As long as the satellites continued sending pictures, the monitors showed catastrophe on a global scale. Coastlines were submerged, islands disappeared, mountain chains exploded, fault lines opened and swallowed cities in a cascade of flames, plumes of smoke miles high, and the black dust and ash of the end of the world.” Ch 1 Abomination, by Jane Dougherty

Step Two – A Villain’s Reasoning 

Now, it’s all fun and games breaking shit for literary giggles. But readers won’t be laughing if there isn’t a fully thought out justification for society’s fuckedupness (that’s 100% a word).

I’m not about spoilers, so I can’t tell you about the main villain in Dougherty’s book, but Ace, the second villain, is really just a scared little boy, using bigger boys to beat on others in order to do what he wants and retain control.

Divergent is another good example of this. The ‘real’ world is broken by war, their justification for locking people in Chicago and sectioning them off into factions is to wait for evolution to bring about ‘whole’ humans again in order to broker peace. That sounds like a reasonable justification to me. But the key here is you do need a believable justification.

If you want more tips on Villains, subscribe to get the latest news on my book release, 13 Steps to Evil – The Ultimate Writer’s Guide To Creating Superbad Villains.

Step Three – Physical Dystopia

Now as much as you shaft your characters intangible psychological stuff in your dystopian setting, you also need to tinker with the physical. By that I mean your setting.

Usually a dystopian setting is based on a world that is dying, been through some kind of world ending war, or ravaged by viruses. Whatever the cause it needs to be messy.

Some things to consider include:

• Buildings, where do people sleep/eat/live
• Weather
• Clothing
• Technology
• Food and the ease of access to it

I am super visual and draw a lot of inspiration from seeing things. One of the things I wanted to achieve before I was 30 was entering a derelict building. So far I’ve got photos of a derelict barn and a burnt out canal boat. I’ve also managed to talk my way into being allowed into a derelict school so I’ll be taking photos of that soon too. Below are some images I’ve taken for dystopian inspiration:

Dougherty is the master of creating a broken world. I lost count of how many sentences I highlighted. But here are some examples of her gorgeous descriptions:

“…the track behind him erupted into a tangled web of razor wire and jagged pieces of beaten metal. The creatures raced into the trap, hoisted into the air by barbs that tore deep into their flesh.” Ch6, Abomination, by Jane Dougherty

“The smell he gave off was a heady mixture of unwashed human and decomposing canine.” Ch 7, Abomination by Jane Dougherty

“Everywhere piles of debris and smashed lights and windows bore witness to the fighting for control of the place. Shops had been pillaged, some burnt out, all had been defiled in some way. The wall were plastered with tags, scowls and daubs, spattered with paint, excrement and blood. Even in the cold, even with half the glass in the doors and windows put out, the stench remains. It was the smell of decay, of putrefaction, of a whole civilisation rotting away.” Ch 13, Abomination by Jane Dougherty

Step Three – The Struggle

If you break something, then something needs to be a struggle. It doesn’t matter what that struggle is, but you need to make some part of living hard for your characters.

Usual suspects, include food and shelter. But as in Delirium, it’s being able to love freely.

Step Four – The Extreme

Once you decide what your something broken is, and what your something struggle is (I feel like I’m wedding planning now, I just need something blue) you need to take shit to the next level.

I’ve talked about pushing readers to the extreme in recent post on giving readers book hangovers.

Struggles and extremes come hand in hand like cupcakes and my stomach. If you want to make your characters struggle the easiest way to do it, is to take whatever is broken and push it to the next level.

For example, in the Hunger Games, not only do they struggle for food, they then have to sacrifice CHILDREN to prevent war.

In Divergent, not only do they get ‘tested’ for personality traits, they then have to live, breathe and be all consumed by those traits.

In Dougherty’s book, everything is pushed to the extreme. The world really is ending. Food is limited and if they don’t starve to death first, they will freeze because of the weather extremes.

Step Five – The Warning Message

And here we come to an end. Through all the catastrophes, character starving and blowing of shit up, is the thought you want to leave your readers with.

What is your theme? What is the message about society that you are really leaving readers with?

In Uglies, by Scott Westerfield – in which at 16 you undergo plastic surgery to make you pretty – pretty being societies pre-determined definition of pretty- his message is clear. Don’t be a sheep. Stay unique, and don’t become a drone. Wanting to be the same as everyone else, is more than just visibly damaging, it’s mentally damaging. It’s okay to be different.

I asked Dougherty, three questions on dystopian settings, here’s our Q&A:

Q1. Jane, where did you draw inspiration from?

A.1 For the wormhole aspect the idea came from looking through a kid’s science magazine and thinking what a really cool idea wormhole theory is. Using them as shortcuts through time and space, I mean, since they really do exist, and have been created artificially. I love space, string theory, parallel worlds and all that but I don’t have a very scientific mind and it’s so rare I actually cotton onto a theory. Probably because the article was written for eleven year olds…

The shopping mall idea comes from a visceral horror of shopping and a morbid fear of being trapped in a mall. Photos of abandoned commercial and industrial sites have also worked their way into my imagination.

Q2. What did you find most important to consider when thinking about getting a realistic apocalyptic setting 

A.2 There are dozens of apocalyptic stories around, many of them, like mine set in the ruins of cities and inhabited by blood-crazed savages/aliens/zombies/normal terrified people who don’t know where else to go. It’s all very plausible (if you believe in zombies) but for how long would it be possible to scratch an existence in the ruins? There’s a limit to how many cans of beans and packets of cornflakes you could scavenge before the perishables just…perished or got eaten. No electricity, no water, no agriculture, nothing produced at all. I reckoned five years would be just about all we’d get, to paraphrase Bowie. I’ve read plenty of stories where food supplies, new clothes, shoes, munitions for guns, fresh fruit and vegetables, household implements etc all appear out of nowhere, when nobody is actually producing anything. When that happens, my belief in the story crumbles completely. If somebody makes a sandwich in a post apocalyptic world, I want to know where the f**k the sliced bread and the lettuce came from. How to manage on nothing seems to me what’s most important. If you can’t find a solution to that one, then everybody has to be dead.

Q3. What would your three top tips be for anyone wanting to create an apocalyptic or dystopian setting?

A.3 Decide on your social structure. Is society going to be organized to continue producing what we are used to having, or is it going to collapse completely and morph into something else? Who will run it, to what end, and is there an alternative?

There has to be a conflict; somebody has to be in disagreement with the new society. Perhaps there’s a threat, aliens, human gangs/armies etc. Whatever, even if it’s a utopia, it needs an opposition not only to make it credible, but to create perspective and depth and, let’s face it, a good story.

Keep it realistic. Whatever commodities your characters use, you need to be able to account for how they came by them or made them. If the refrigerator still works, you need to explain how, likewise where does the fuel come from for the cars, the electricity for the lights, running water, the sewage system. And don’t go to the other extreme with a highly urbanized population of Homer Simpsons suddenly intuitively rediscovering the lost arts of long bow making, home steel production and arrowhead manufacture, spinning, weaving and sewing with fish gut. Don’t kid yourselves, it wouldn’t happen.

NEWS ALERT – CALLING ALL READERS OF BOOKS!

There’s a new campaign out – if you’re a reader and you don’t leave reviews, then you should. Reviews are the bread and butter of a writers career. Terry Tyler has started a new twitter hashtag, #AugustReviews with the goal of encouraging readers to leave just one review in the month of August. PLEASE join in, and check out her campaign here.

I wanted to leave you with my favourite quote from Dougherty’s book:

“To go where? You don’t understand because you’ve only just arrived, but the rest of us have lived  through five years of watching the earth pulling the plug on itself and humanity squabbling over the leavings like dogs over a bone. There is nowhere to go, nowhere that isn’t exactly like this.” Abomination, Ch 35, Jane Dougherty

You can buy Abomination from Amazon UK or Finch Books.

As a point of review, while Dougherty’s book is awesome of the highest proportions, and I really did love it (go read it now), if you are faint of heart or on the sensitive side, read it with caution. Dougherty is not afraid of…well, anything.

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The post Perfect Your Dystopian World in 5 Easy Steps appeared first on Sacha Black.

But despite all that, when you see the results or hear of a reader sobbing at 3am because you killed bunnikins the third and all his fluffy bunnywabbit babies, it makes it all worth while.

We’ve all been there: unable to see the page for the hysterical tears, or laughing so hard you drop the book and lose your page. Or the ultimate – been given a book hangover by the latest series you binge read.

As authors, that’s exactly what we want to do our readers: hook em’, shake em, change em’, and set them free again.

The key to a hangover, is being able to change a reader, but in order to achieve that change, we need to drag them into the heart of our story. Which means, we need to know what the heart of our story is in the first place.

STEP ONE – Figure Out Your Own Why

Figure out why you’re really writing this story. And I don’t mean the pissy little answers non-writers assume like: ‘Oh there’s a book in you’ or “it’s just for fun’ or ‘you’re trying to be a writer.’ Sorry but while those things might be true, they’re mostly bullshit.

I’ve talked about finding your why, and your own personal philosophy before. The same principle can be applied here. Knowing why you write before you start writing is important because it’s your driving mechanism. It’s what keeps you going when fear, resistance and self-doubt are paralysing you.

Maybe you write to deal with your own personal baggage. Or perhaps to create the life you always wish you’d had, perhaps it’s rectifying a wrong you did or had done to you in the past.

Me? I’m a truth seeker.

I write because I want to explore truth. In every way: personal, global and human. I want to understand what our truth is. Are humans innately good? Or are we really a poison virus raping and pillaging the Earth? Frankly I’m fucking terrified it’s the latter. But there’s the crux of it, that fear is what drives me to delve deep inside people, rummage around the rawness of jealousy, love and pain and discover the most brutal truth there is.

So have a think, and let me know why you really write in the comments.

STEP TWO – Why are you writing THIS story?

It’s one thing to know why you write at all, but each story is an entity, a ‘being’ in itself. Each story has its’ own why and that’s the core of your story. It’s like your books own personal philosophy.

It’s more than just a theme, although theme is a major part of finding the heart of your story. Last week, in Lies – 5 Tips to Master The Perfect Character Arc, I talked about the Hunger Games, and the fact that Katniss believes that in order to survive she has to kill all the other tributes. This is the perfect example, because really the core of the book is about sacrifice.

And that’s Katniss’ truth – there is another way, but it will cost her, her life. No one said the truth was going to be what you wanted to here.

The reason we’re so sucked in to the Hunger Games, is because that truth, that core theme, is clear from the start. It might be subtly woven through the whole book, in order to make it a great read, but we know it’s there as readers. We feel it, because Suzanne Collins ensures that golden ‘sacrifice’ thread is stitched from the very first chapter (when Katniss makes her first sacrifice to be a tribute in place of her sister) right through to the end where she makes her final sacrifice, to die herself rather than kill Peta.

Connect those dots and readers will eat out of the palm of your hand.

STEP THREE – Take It To The Extreme

The thing is. Once you find your books core, it’s tender blood-filled heart, you need to rip it the fuck out and put it on display for your readers.

Seriously.

Bollocks to sensitivities and manners. People read books to be affected. To be made to feel something.

That’s how you do it. You take your core theme, your books why, and then push it (through your characters) to its absolute extreme.

Human experience, and our reaction to it is how you make people feel. Think about it.

If your character loved someone and the worst thing that happened to them in the whole book was their lover going away for two months.

Really?

Who gives a shitsickle. I could poop more interesting storylines.

But what if there was a misunderstanding, a row, their worst one yet and the last thing she said to her lover was she hated him, and then he went away. What if she regretted it the minute he left and travelled after him going through extreme conditions to find him only to discover he’d been killed. Well now, that’s more interesting. Sure, there are ways of pushing that storyline a LOT further, I’m just making the point.

If we go back to Katniss, we know that she IS pushed to the extreme. Both mentally and physically, having to fight and kill and cling to life with her fingertips.

These experiences are what lead her to her ultimate truth – she would rather sacrifice herself than that of a loved one.

And that is how you get to the heart of your book. If you can do that, you’re guaranteed to give your readers a book hangover.

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The post How To Give Your Readers A Book Hangover in 3 Easy Steps appeared first on Sacha Black.

Because it’s my genre I took the opportunity to research. I never read a book without taking a lesson from it.

This time I learnt all about the character arc and one awesome method for achieving the perfect curve! The book I read: Frostbite by Richelle Mead (part of the Vampire Academy series), used an awesome technique in which to perfect that arc – Lies. 

Frostbite is actually the second book in the Vampire Academy series, the first of which you can find in here (waffly Amazon blurb whatsit about the book is at the end of the post). There’s also a film if you want some full-fat mozzarella covered teeny-bopper film action. Honestly, it was shit, but I fucking loved it! Moving on…

What is a character arc?

Wikipedia says:

“A character arc is the transformation or inner journey of a character over the course of a story. If a story has a character arc, the character begins as one sort of person, and during the story, things happen which gradually transforms him or her into a different sort of person.”

ONE – You Need a Lie

Although there are countless ways to push your character through its arc, one things fer-shizzle, you do actually need a character arc. And sure, some smart arse is going to quote the three literary fiction books where this isn’t the case. But frankly, they need to back the F away from literary fiction cause were talking about mainstream shit here.

An arc gives you pace, conflict, and plot. More important than all of that, is the fact that an arc gives your character depth. It’s what will drive your readers to root for your characters because they watch them grow and change; readers become part of your characters change.

One guaranteed method for giving you an arc, is a lie a character believes and has to ‘realise’ the truth about during the book.

TWO – What is Your Characters Lie?

For YA writers especially that lie is usually something they believe about themselves or about the world. Often it’s something naive or narrow minded, like: the world owes me something or, the world revolves around me, I want such and such therefore I should get it.

But it doesn’t have to be a lie about themselves. For other writers that lie could be anything, for example a lie about another character.

Let’s take a romance novel example. You know the one, where the main character hates the male lead because she believes a lie about him. As long as you’ve drunk your morning coffee, the lie doesn’t have to be literal either.

I’m not talking this kind of lie: Mark said to Frank, the guy I like, that I had genital warts, therefore Mark’s a prick and I hate him.

I’m talking the kind of lie that means she thinks Mark’s a douche bag. Maybe she always thought it. Or perhaps she thinks it because she heard about the crappy break up he ha with a friend of a friend, or perhaps its just an assumption she made.

THREE – Connect The Lie to Your Theme

The lie Katniss (in the Hunger Games) believes, is that: she has to kill all the other tributes in order to survive. But that’s the last thing she wants to do.

She believes that lie right up to the end, when she realises there is another way – if they both kill themselves, they beat the system. And here in lies the orgasm-inducing beauty connecting the lie to the book’s theme, which is: Sacrifice.

You see it even at the beginning of the story, Katniss believes if you’re picked at a tribute you have to go, when her sister is picked, she realises there is another way, if she sacrifices herself by taking her sisters place, she can beat the system. DAMN that’s some awesome foreshadowing.

FOUR – Lies = Conflict

In Frostbite, Rose, the seventeen year old main character, believes that because she loves Dimitri, they should be together, no matter what. 

“I wasn’t the only one who had trouble ignoring the romantic tension between us.” Rose Hathaway, p.13 of Frostbite by Richelle Mead.

But of course it isn’t that simple. He’s her teacher for one, and although only twenty-three himself, still several years older than her. He then gets faced with an opportunity that will make his career fly – if only he moved away from Rose for good.

This one little lie, drives conflict throughout the book. It causes emotional reactions, they fall out, but secretly both still care.

The lie your character believes should be driving their behaviour, i.e. the emotional reaction Rose has when she finds out about the job opportunity Dimitri’s been given. She over reacts and is a bitchy little teen-brat. Which drives the stories tension and ratchets up the conflict, especially between the two of them.

FIVE – Time the lie

If your character believes a lie that they then get over later in the book. Then the lie needs to be made clear very early in the story. Like just woke up, haven’t even had a morning wee, early. Rose’s lie is made clear in the first chapter.

If your lie is connected to your theme, it becomes part of your hook or books promise to the reader. Take the Hunger Games, the first chapter is all about Katniss sacrificing herself for the lie she believes.

But the resolution of that lie, doesn’t come until later. I made an assumption that the lie, would resolve itself during the climax of the story, i.e. right at the bloody end. But I was wrong. (I know. I was shocked too. I hate being wrong. Just ask the Bloggers Bash committee:Geoffle, Ali and Hugh.

In most cases the lie needs to be resolve about 75% of the way through the story, or at least, before the climax of the story. In the case of the Hunger Games, realising the truth is the puzzle piece she needs in order to beat the system. 

For Rose,  she believed that her and Dimitri should be together no matter what. She finally realises that if she really loves Dimitri she has to let him go:

“You can’t force love, I realized. It’s there or it isn’t. If it’s not there, you’ve got to be able to admit it. If it is  there, you’ve got to do whatever it takes to protect the ones you love. The next words that came out of my mouth astonished me, both because they were completely unselfish and because I actually meant them. “You should take it.” He flinched. “What?” “Tasha’s offer. You should take her up on it. It’s a really great chance.”” p.235, Frostbite by Richelle Mead

This excerpt is on page 235 of 328 pages, exactly 71.5% through the book.

What do you think? Does your character believe a lie? What tricks do you use to drive your character through its arc. Let me know in the comments below.

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Amazon has this to say about Frostbite:

FROSTBITE is the second book in the international Number 1 bestselling Vampire Academy series by Richelle Mead 

Higher Learning. Higher Stakes.

WINTER BREAK TURNS DEADLY.
A massive vampire attack has put St. Vladimir’s Academy on high alert. With the deadly creatures closing in, this year’s trip to the wintery peaks of Idaho has just become mandatory.

But Rose Hathaway can’t escape her (guy) troubles. Her relationship with gorgeous tutor Dimitri can never be and her closest friend has just confessed to his huge crush on her . . .

The glittering winter landscape may seem like the perfect hideaway – but Rose, and her heart, are in more danger than she ever imagined.

The post Lies – 5 Tips to Master The Perfect Character Arc appeared first on Sacha Black.

Sixteen was this magical creature where suddenly I would be grown up and allowed to do lots of things. I’d be a ‘real’ teenager. Sixteen came and went, and then eighteen arrived and before I blinked I was twenty-one. By the time I was twenty-five, I realised I’d made a heinous fucking mistake.

Adulthood is the equivalent of being slapped daily with a decomposing Kipper infested with rabies. My life was filled with a suburban nightmare, bills, a work monotony that could make paint drying seem like the Oscars and a side order of fuck my life.

Peter Pan syndrome rapidly kicked in. I wanted to be a child forever. I rebelled against the rules, had a bit of a break down, got very fucking drunk, had my skin inked and then bitch slapped the sense back in. I had to tell myself:

That magical envelope was not going to fly down my chimney and whisk me off to wizarding school, neither would Edward Cullen fall in love with me and make me immortal, and sadly, I had neither angel nor demon blood, so I wasn’t a shadow hunter either.

I spiralled into an intensely primal binge fest of YA fiction and TV series and then I had an epiphany. If I wrote it, I could live it.

But understanding the differences between Middle Grade (MG), Young Adult (YA) and New Adult (NA) fiction is easier said than done.

Now, before you read this, let me make a caveat: I am not a publisher, nor (unfortunately) am I J.K. Rowling. I am just a lowly writer, reader and lover of YA stories.

Some time ago, I promised a two-part series on sex in YA and MG and NA fiction. I will deliver but those posts are still in research. First, I wanted to define the differences.

Way back when I was still in nappies, and drooling over a hot milk and mush, there was only MG and YA fiction. NA fiction is a relatively new appearance. But even my mum knows, if you want a publisher you need to know your market. So understanding what NA is, is vital.

MIDDLE GRADE

Shorter than traditional fiction and ranging somewhere around the 25K – 50K word count.

Like me as a child, reader ages are ALWAYS younger than the protagonist. Kids are idiots. They want to grow up which is what makes pitching the themes and content such a sticky topic.

Readers are 9-12.

These kids and characters alike are pre teen, they are just beginning to find themselves. Which means the topics and themes in the books need to be pre teen too.

For example, school issues, bullying, friendships, difficulties at home, parents, fitting in, sibling rivalry and family conflict.

The books generally have short chapters, parents remain an integral influence in stories, occasionally there are still small illustrations, love is kept to a minimum, although in some modern books there are ‘first kisses’ and young love and there doesn’t tend to be much violence. Although, who am I to forget some of my favourite childhood books like Goosebumps.

They tend to have more basic language and few if any subplots.

YOUNG ADULT

Is marginally shorter than traditional fiction but more and more often now sits at the lower end of a normal novel length. Depending on where you pitch the books age range, the length could be anything from:

Protagonists can be any age that encompasses teenager! 13 up to about 17.

Readers are 13+ up to about 17.

Themes are understandably older like finding oneself and ones role in life, tragedy, loss, difficult choices, sacrifice, relationships, first love, identity, becoming an adult.

These books are grittier than MG books, often mimicking adult styling, such as subplots, adult language and some violence, sex and the occasional cuss. Except that the pace, is almost always fast.

These novels are real, representing real stories and real issues that teenagers feel. If there is even a hint of patronisation your book will get chucked on every teens slush pile never to be opened again.

The majority of YA novels are about ‘coming of age’.

NEW ADULT

Is effectively a book for younger adults, and the word count range is reflected accordingly: 60K-85K.

Protagonists 17 – 25

Readers – now this is where I will deviate from the accepted norm. Traditionally this is for readers aged 18 to mid twenties. However, like with most things in growing up and with the other genres, kids read above their age. At 16 I would have and did pick up books for adults (or what would now be known as NA fiction). Personally, I feel like the readers are more likely to be 16+ with the majority being 18+.

BUT, and this comes from snippets of quotes I have read  from literary agents. NA is NOT just YA with sex. It is an older target market with older protagonists. Think back to 17,  I am sure you were totally different four years later at 21. Those differences in thought pattern, emotional intelligence, decision making. All need to be reflected in your characters.

It’s the whole, ‘shit I’m legally an adult and have to deal with bills and crap,’ realisation whilst knowing deep down you’re still a teenybopper who doesn’t want to do their uni work on a Friday night when it’s pound a pint. You get the picture.

Themes: Independence, learning to be independent, experiencing the difficulties of being independent. Being an adult for the first time with adult responsibilities (looking after ones self, a house, bills etc) without having a mum and dad to fall back on. Experiencing adulthood without the emotional capability to deal with it yet. Looking to adult life, relationships, careers etc whilst trying to figure out what the fuck being an adult and specifically ‘their version of an adult’ means.

On a different note… I am taking a pause on the blog. My posts will be a little slower for a few months, my comments which I already take an age to respond to, will take me that bit longer. I will reply to every one, but it may take me a few days.

Why am I slowing down? Because, I owe it to myself to finish my books. Whilst I am working on them in the background, it’s not the pace I would like. As much as this physically pains me, (and it really does) I have to accept that I do actually need some sleep! I hope you will stick with me even though I will be a little slack.

Thoughts? What do you think the differences are between the genres? What good books have you read in each genre?

The post Understanding YA, NA and MG – A Writers Bible appeared first on Sacha Black.